The next
few months flew by for Tegan. She was getting most of her school stuff done
so she won't have anything to worry about when the time came for her to leave
school which was now only two days away. Everyone knew she was pregnant now,
there was no way she could hide it and they were all wishing her luck with the
baby and hoping that everything went well. Some of them had even chipped in
bought her a small pram. She was so grateful to them for that, her and Jamie
had received a card of the whole class wishing them both lots of happiness and
love.

When
the day for finally getting out of school arrived, Tegan was excited. There
wouldn't be any work that day just a major party. The school was putting on
a show with some of the leavers and they even hired Plain Lazy to play. Jamie
was more than happy to play for the leavers as she remembered the band they
had had for her leavers day. It had to be one of the worst bands in the world.
Everyone had walked out for some reason during the time the band was on and
the school didn't want to make the same mistake again. Plain Lazy had become
quite established in Seaview in the short time since their first public performance.
They had been hired to play a couple of night-clubs since then and had even
played a small concert at The Legends Pass, although they were hired by Jamie
for that. They even had a couple of groupies now. Granted Tegan and Jenny were
two of them. Jenny had been seeing Mike a lot over the last couple of weeks
and they were getting on really well, so whenever Plain Lazy were playing Jenny
was there to support Mike, he was the drummer of the band and quite popular
with the girls. Tegan had joked that Jenny only wanted to spend so much time
with him to keep an eye on him. Jenny hadn't disputed that, she had just smiled
before heading over to join the man in question.

'Yep'
Tegan thought to herself with a smile as she lay in bed. 'Everything was
going really well.' She had her GCSE's starting in a months time and she
felt totally prepared for them. She just hoped the baby didn't decide to make
an early appearance. The doctors had been checking up on her a lot since the
threatened miscarriage and they had continued to ask her if she wanted to know
the sex of the baby but the answer was always the same. 'I want it to be a surprise.'
She knew that it would be better to know what the sex was so she could prepare
for it one way or the other but she kept reminding herself that not knowing
was all of the fun. Jamie and her hand started buying a few things, mostly clothes
that a baby could wear whatever the sex, but deep down in her heart Tegan had
a suspicion that it was a girl. She had told Jamie about this and Jamie had
told her to believe it, because sometimes those instincts were right. She remembered
the conversation like it was only yesterday.

"What
do you think the baby will be?" She had asked Jamie as they lay in
bed one morning, trying to decide whether to get out of bed and get ready
for nothing or stay in bed and do nothing but stay comfortable.

"I
don't know" Jamie admitted, she had no connection to the baby in order
to know. Tegan seemed to be carrying pretty high which usually meant a girl
but Jamie couldn't really tell. "What do you think it's going to be?"

Tegan
thought about it before answering "I think it's going to be a girl"
She admitted before looking into her partner's eyes "I know it sounds
pretty stupid but I can feel it in my heart that it will be a girl."

Jamie
smiled before leaning over and kissing the smaller woman's forehead "I
don't think it's stupid at all" She admitted "When my Mother was
carrying me and Sophie she always said she was expecting a girl. She said
she felt something way down deep inside her that told her it wasn't a boy.
She never experienced that with Robin."

"Really?"
Tegan asked not quite sure whether to believe that or not.

"Yeah
so if I were you, I would follow what your heart is telling you. It isn't
wrong very often" Jamie had told her, before they both settled back
into the silence of the bedroom.

Tegan
had felt better after that and more sure of herself and that the child she was
carry was going to be a girl. Which lead her to start thinking about names.
She wanted to know the child something that was special to her family but she
would have liked to have named the baby after someone close to Jamie as well.
For some unknown reason her mind seemed stuck on three names - Cassie, Jane
and Victoria. The name Cassie seemed to echo in her mind more than anything
but she didn't know why. Jane she knew was after her grandmother and Victoria
was the name of Jamie's grandmother. With that in mind she picked up the phone
and dialled her grandmother's house.

"Good
Morning, The Llewellyn Residence" The voice on the other end of the phone
answered. "How may I help you?"

Tegan
listened as the phone was placed on the table and she heard the footsteps of
her Butler moving away from the phone. It wasn't long before she heard a different
set of footsteps walk towards the telephone. Just before Jane spoke.

"Good
morning, Tegan" The smile was evident in Jane's voice as she spoke. "How
are you feeling?"

"I'm
feeling fine thanks Gu. How are you?" Tegan answered, glad she didn't have
to lie about it.

"I'm
fine thank you. Now what can I do you for little one?" Jane used the name
she had nearly always used for her youngest granddaughter.

"Well
actually I was kind of wondering if the name Cassie meant anything to you?"
Tegan admitted, she had already asked Anne and Jamie if it meant anything to
their family and Anne told her she didn't think it did but she couldn't be sure.
So she figured Jane might have a clue as to why that name seemed to stick out
more than anything else.

"Cassie?"
Jane was surprised, she hadn't expected that. "Why do you ask?" Jane
thought about it for a minute 'She can't possibly know about Cassie. I haven't
told her about my past life experiences' Jane didn't know what to say so
she waited for Tegan to answer.

"Well
I was thinking about names for the baby if it's a girl and for some reason the
name Cassie kept jumping out at me so I was wondering if it meant anything to
you. Maybe I had heard you mentioning it or something." Tegan admitted,
honestly. She could tell by the sound of Jane's voice that the name did mean
something to her, this intrigued Tegan more than she thought possible.

"Well
as a matter of fact it does mean something to me" Jane admitted, before
she started on the tale of two lovers in their family history. "You see
my Mother used to tell me stories about two women in out past. Cassie and Sarah.
You know the stories on my ceiling?" she waited for the yes of Tegan before
continuing "Well Cassie and Sarah are supposed to be descendants of the
them and as a matter of fact both of them are on my ceiling"

"Really"
Tegan was even more intrigued "What's the story behind them?"

"Well
it's a long story so how about when I come there to visit I bring the book my
mother had published about them with me. You can read it when you are relaxing.
Has the Doctor given you a due date yet?" Jane had been wondering how long
Tegan had left to go.

"Yes
as a matter of fact they have. I am due around about July the 25th" She
told her, speaking about the date brought a smile to her face again. It was
May now and she was really looking forward to the birth. She was also anxious.
Everyone was telling her it was like trying to pass a soccer ball and she could
only imagine how much that was going to hurt but she knew that at the end of
it all, it was worth it. "The doctor's have said everything is looking
great. The baby is moving around quite a bit now. But for some reason Jamie
has a way of settling her down" Tegan used the term without really thinking
about it.

"I
take it you know the sex then?" Jane asked.

"Well
no actually I don't but I have a feeling" Tegan admitted, she was surprised
when Jane gave her the same advice as Jamie .

"Follow
that feeling Tegan. It isn't wrong very often" She told her. They spoke
for a while about different things before they hung up and Tegan went back to
thinking about the name of the baby and why Cassie intrigued her so much.

*
* * * *

Jamie
and the rest of Plain Lazy were wandering around Seaview town center looking
for some stuff ready for the gig they had at the school in two days time. They
had all put money towards getting a second drum kit so they had a practice kit
and a concert kit. They arrived at the music shop shortly after noon and they
all agreed to split up and have a look around before meeting up at the kits
section in fifteen minutes.

Jamie
and Darren made their way over to the guitars. Darren had been fancying a new
guitar for a few weeks and he had been waiting to show it to Jamie before he
decided whether to buy it or not and he realised that this could be the last
time he had a chance to show her for a while. "Here's that guitar, JP"
He pointed to a Gibson guitar hooked on the wall. He knew Jamie would tell him
not to bother about a new guitar because she loved his guitar.

Jamie
looked at the Rosewood guitar he was pointing to and she raised an eyebrow.
She wasn't that fussed on Gibson guitar's because they weren't her style but
Darren had been crazy about the for as long as she could remember. They were
nice guitar's but Jamie was more of a Fender Stratocaster person. "It's
nice" Was all she said "Are you going to get it?"

"I
want too" He admitted, looking once again at the price tag. Three hundred
and twenty pounds for a guitar was a lot of money but he wanted it so badly
he would have paid three times that much. He smiled brightly before reaching
for his wallet. Then he headed over to the counter to as for assistance.

While
he was doing that Jamie was looking at a semi-acoustic Vintage guitar that was
resting in a stand on the floor. It was black with white flowers by the neck.
She had been planning on getting a new acoustic for a while now because the
one she used was her fathers and he had been given it when he was fifteen, so
it was older than her. 'Maybe I can get it after Tegan has the baby'
She thought to herself before walking over to the pianos and looking at them
for a while.

Once
Darren had got himself sorted out, him and Jamie headed for the drum kits, where
the rest of the band was patiently waiting for them. It took them all of five
minutes to decide on the perfect kit. It was a black premier kit and it was
already tuned up so it would save them the trouble. Mike was really impressed
with it and seeing as he was the one who had to play it, that was fine with
them.

Jamie,
who had borrowed her father's Discovery for the afternoon, went and collected
the car for the car park and headed back over to the shop so they could load
the drums into it. The drums came with their own cases so there wasn't any risk
of them breaking. Then everyone climbed in and they headed back to the Triclub
so they could practice.

*
* * * *

The
sun was beating down on the back of Cassie as she rode towards the mountains.
'Why do I always have to wear black shirts' she thought to herself. 'Everyone
knows that black absorbs the sun and that on a day like this you should
wear white but now you had to wear black' she was absolutely furious with
herself. It had been a long hard ride and she knew that she should rest
herself and her horse, but the sheriff was most probably on her tale and
she didn't fancy another run-in with the law. It wasn't that she had done
anything to earn it anyway just being the wrong person at the wrong time.

Being
on the run was never easy, especially when you had a price on your head
but for Cassie it was harder than most because she was a woman who had no
trouble of drawing attention to herself. All she had to do was walk into
room and it went dead quiet and all the men stood there, mouths open. She
was an absolutely stunning woman with hair the colour of the night sky and
eyes the colour of sun filled sky. People said it depends on how you look
at it. If you were fearing for your life at the hands of the outlaw then
the eyes reflected the ice that seemed to fill her heart and soul, if she
was a close friend of yours and you got to she the affectionate side of
her then those same eyes were the blue of the sky. Most people saw the Ice
cold blue.

As
Cassie finally drew closer to the small village she was due to pass to get
to the mountains, she heard a scream, automatically reaching for her gun
she jumped off her horse and made her way towards the scream, chastising
herself for getting involved when she was trying to outrun the people that
were chasing her and she was stopping to see who was screaming.

What
she saw made her totally mad and disgusted. There was a three men surrounding
a young slip of a girl, Cassie figured she was only eighteen or nineteen.
One of them were holding her arms above her head and the another was holding
her legs to stop her from struggling. The other was unzipping his pants
to have his way with her. If there was one thing Cassie hated it was someone
who took their pleasure from an unwilling subject.

She
ran towards the gang and quickly disposed of them. Before the young girl
knew it she was free from the men and there was an magnificent woman stood
in front of her. Then she kneeled down looked the young girl over. "Are
you ok?" She asked, checking the girl for wounds.

"Yes
I am now" The young girl admitted gratefully. "I'm Sarah"

Cassie
held her hand out to shake the offered hand. "Cassie" She said
"And you look fine. You should go home"

Sarah
knew she was right she should go home to her family. Well her sister and
her mother but why should she go back to him. Her father may just do what
these men failed to do. He was going to be absolutely furious when she returned
home without the supplies he had sent her for and word had most probably
arrived home saying that she had left town with three strange men. Not like
she had a choice or anything. But he wouldn't believe that. "Yeah I
should" Sarah reluctantly agreed.

Cassie
heard the reluctance in her voice and frowned. "It doesn't sound like
that's what you want" Cassie had run away from home when she was about
eighteen and she had missed having her family there for her when she needed
them. She knew the error of her ways and couldn't understand why the girl
couldn't.

"It
isn't what I want" Sarah told her truthfully. "I don't want to
spend one more day in that house" She saw the frown on the older woman's
face and continued her story. "They want me to marry the Undertaker's
son. He's nice and everything but he is kind of dull and he really isn't
my type. My father doesn't understand and I just want to get away"

"Some
people don't have the choice of who they want to marry. Be grateful you've
had an offer" Cassie told her. She understand all to well what it was
like to be pressured into a relationship she didn't want. When she ran away
from home she was to be married to Lucas the Blacksmith's son. But that
wasn't what she wanted, so she ran away. She had always been attracted to
women, in a way that was seen as perverted by many of her family and friends
and she didn't think they would understand. So she had left a note the night
she left.

Sarah
heard the sadness in Cassie's voice as she spoke and the smaller woman wondered
if Cassie had ever had an offer. She was about to ask when Cassie started
speaking again. "If you don't want to go home, what are you going to
do?"

Sarah
thought about that for a few minutes before looking into the blue eyes of
the woman who had saved her. "I could come with you?" It was more
of a question than a statement.

"You
don't want to do that" Cassie told her. "There is nothing out
here with me except for travelling everywhere. Never knowing where you are
going to sleep, never knowing what you are going to eat. That's not the
life for a young woman like you"

"Neither
is staying here and letting my soul die because I am living the life someone
else wants me too" Sarah told her. "I'm not going to stay here"
She was adamant about that.

Cassie
looked into the green eyes of the young girl who was sitting here arguing
with her after nearly being raped and she knew that the girl was serious
about not staying there. 'What can I do about it?' She thought 'I can't
leave her wandering around on her own, not with men like that around' she
looked towards the men that had brought them together and she agreed with
her conscience totally. "Do you have any stuff with you?"

"Excuse
me?" Sarah was surprised, she hadn't expected an answer like that,
at least not so quickly.

"Do
you have any stuff with you, clothes and stuff?" Cassie repeated, exasperated

"No
but I can get some" She didn't want to go home but she knew she needed
some change of clothing.

'Do
I send her home to get her clothes and leave her here or do I wait until
she comes back?' Another question needed answering. 'She isn't going to
stay here whether you wait for her or not' a little voice in the back of
her head reminded her and she knew it for the truth. "You go home and
get some stuff and meet me back here after dark tonight"

"You
will wait for me?" She asked, hopefully.

"I'll
wait for you" Cassie told her, mentally shaking her head. 'How can
I be doing this?' she asked herself. 'I've never given into anyone in my
whole live, why I am starting now?'

"Ok"
Sarah reluctantly agreed. Before finally standing up and heading back towards
the village looking over her shoulder making sure Cassie was still there.

Later
that night she returned after leaving a note for her parents telling them
not to worry about her and that she loved them. She was a bit worried that
Cassie wouldn't keep her word and would be gone by the time she arrived.
When she reached the spot she was filled with a great sadness when there
was no sign of the outlaw. She had taken the spare time she had during the
day reading all about Cassie Westwood the outlaw. She had been surprised
when she read about some of the things she was supposed to have done. The
woman she had met earlier didn't seem like that woman. But now as she stood
there with her heart breaking she thought maybe it was true.

She
was just turning back around to go home when she heard a shuffling noise
coming from behind a rock. "Going somewhere?" The deep voice asked
her and she spun around so quickly she almost lost her balance. There stood
in the dark was the most wonderful site she had ever seen.

"You
stayed" It was more a statement than a question.

"Of
course I stayed" Cassie frowned and tensed as the smaller woman threw
herself into the startled arms of the outlaw.

Tegan
was startled awake by the dream that she had. She had no idea where it had come
from but she knew it had something to do with the name that had been meaning
so much to her over the last couple of days. She remembered the story that Jane
had told her about the two soulmates in her past and wondered if that was why
she had dreamed about them now. It was strange so she immediately got out of
bed, walked over to the desk that had her journal on it and she began to write
in the journal about the dream.

*
* * * *

As Tegan
finished off her journal she heard the band start up downstairs so she trotted
downstairs and into Fantasy Island where Plain Lazy were practicing on the stage.

Tegan
stood and watched them for a while, once again captured by the beauty of her
partner. Jamie stood there in black jeans with a baggy white shirt. Her black
hair crusading down her back, a major contrast to the crisp white beneath it.

Jamie
felt Tegan's presence as soon as the younger woman entered the room. There was
a warmth that came from inside her every time Tegan was near. It was like an
alarm going off and it was a very welcomed feeling. Jamie turned to face Tegan
and let a wonderful smile cover her face. 'She is the most beautiful woman
I have ever laid eyes on' she thought to herself. 'Come on stupid, you're
supposed to be practicing here' That was also a major problem having Tegan
around, she found it very difficult to concentrate on what she was doing.

Tegan
just smiled at her before heading towards the stage where she sat down enjoying
the music coming from Plain Lazy.

It wasn't
long before Jamie called a fifteen minute break and she headed towards Tegan.
Tegan gave her a breathtaking smile as she approached. Jamie returned the smile
before taking a seat next to her. "Good morning, Sweetheart." Jamie
leaned over and kissed Tegan gently.

"Good
Morning" Tegan smiled at the endearment. Things like that sounded wonderful
coming from Jamie. There was so much more meaning coming from the words when
she said them. It was like when Jamie said her name, it seemed to start a warmth
down in her stomach that spread through her body. "Did you get the equipment
you wanted?" She asked after mentally reminding herself that that was they
hadn't spend the night together.

"Yeah
we got another drum kit and Darren got his new guitar" Jamie told her.

"Good"
Tegan knew how badly Darren wanted that new guitar and she was glad he finally
had the money to buy it. Jamie had offered to lend him the money loads of times
but he had refused. Saying he wouldn't risk their friendship by taking money
he might not be able to pay back. "Did you get anything?"

"Nah"
Jamie admitted as she took a sip of orange juice Ollie had put on the table
for her. "I looked but didn't want to get anything just yet"

Tegan
just nodded her head. They spoke a bit more before Jamie called everyone back
to the stage for a final run through.

The band
only had two more songs to play when the door opened and in walked Nialls followed
by Jane Llewellyn. Tegan looked over to the door and frowned when she spotted
them before standing up and heading for her grandmother. "Hi" Tegan
wrapped her arms around the older woman "What are you doing here?"

"I
figured we should have a chat. I brought the book with me" Jane told her
granddaughter as she handed over the book.

Tegan
took the book and looked at the picture on the cover. There was a picture that
resembled her and Jamie on the front. 'That can't be possible' She thought
to herself before looking up to meet the green eyes of her grandmother.

"The
resemblance is amazing isn't it" Jane watched as shock changed to confusion,
then to amazement as the reality of what Jane was saying started to sink in.

"Wow"
was the only word that came out of Tegan's mouth. The pair walked over to the
nearest chair and sat down. Tegan hadn't even realised the music had stopped
until Jamie was sitting next to her.

"Is
everything ok?" Jamie had seen Jane come in and spotted the shock on Tegan's
face as Jane led her to a chair and Jamie called a halt to band practice. She
was worried that whatever Jane had told Tegan was bad news and if it was, she
wanted to be there for her.

Tegan
saw the worry on Jamie's and hurried to assure her that everything was fine,
before looking to Jane for permission, when she got it she handed the book to
Jamie.

Tegan
saw the raised eyebrow and smiled. "This is a book about two of my ancestors"
Tegan pointed out to her.

The eyebrow
jumped even further "Really?" Jamie was amazed. Tegan's ancestors
looked exactly like the two of them. 'How is that possible?' She thought
to herself.

"I
suggest you read the book" Jane told them, "Both of you"

Jamie
looked at the picture again before handing the book back to Tegan, making a
promise to herself to read all of the book after Tegan had finished with it.
Then she turned to address Jane "So Mrs. Llewellyn are you planning on
staying in Seaview?" She asked, wondering if Tegan's grandmother was planning
on spending a couple of days with her granddaughter.

"Well
actually I thought about booking myself into the Grande Hotel for a couple of
days. I would like to go to Tegan's leavers ceremony tomorrow, if you don't
mind" Jane looked to Tegan to judge her reaction and when she saw the smile
she knew it was a welcomed suggestion.

"It'll
be nice to have a member of my family there" Tegan admitted, remembering
sadly that her mother wouldn't be able to share this with her.

"I've
got to get to work now, so I'll see you later." She leaned over and kissed
Tegan on the forehead. "It was nice to see you again Mrs. Llewellyn"

"It
was nice to see you as well, Jamie" Jane answered and then watched as the
taller woman walked away. "She seems nice" She told her granddaughter.

Tegan
just smiled and nodded in agreement with her grandmother's statement. "That
is so true"

Jane
just smiled before annnouncing that she was going to head to the hotel and book
herself a room. Tegan said goodbye to her before heading back upstairs. As soon
as she got upstairs she made herself a cup of tea and sat at the sofa with the
book Jane had brough for her to read. It wasn't long before she was engrossed
in the story of Cassie the Outlaw and Sarah.

Tegan's
Leaver's Day.

The
day got off to a slow start. Tegan and Sophie made their way to the classroom
that some of them had spent the last five years, Tegan, fortunately for her,
only had to spend a few months there. Everything seemed to finally be happening.
This was her last official day in school. After today she cold do what ever
she pleased and the school could do nothing about it. Not that she planned to
do anything anyway, she just wanted to get today over and then go home and rest.
She had decided that that was one downer about being pregnant, she was nearly
always tired. But she was learning to live with it.

It
wasn't long before Sophie and Tegan were sat in their seats and they were watching
as the rest of the school came in as well as the families of the leavers and
the teachers. Tegan watched Jane come in and sit with John. Jamie had commented
on that before, saying she was glad her father wouldn't have to sit alone because
Anne couldn't sit with him because she was a teacher and Jamie couldn't sit
with him because she was performing and the group needed to be near the dressing
room so they could make a run for it without disturbing the show.

Tegan
looked through the crowd of parents and families sat there and looked down towards
the dressing rooms to see Jamie and sure enough, there she was, looking at her
with a smile on her face. Tegan smiled back before blushing and looking away.

"She
loves you a lot" Sophie whispered into Tegan's ear as they sat waiting
for the ceremony to start.

Tegan
looked over and Jamie again and smiled, Jamie wasn't looking at her this time,
she was chatting to Darren. "I know." She sighed and wondered what
she ever did to deserve someone like Jamie. Then she watched as the Headmaster
walked onto the stage.

He
started rattling on about all that had happened over the last few years with
the crowd he was now address and before long he was wishing them all good luck
in their future endeavours and then he was announcing the act that was going
to follow. A group of leavers had got together to do a little play about what
the future held for many of them.

Jamie
and Tegan watched the show from their separate sides and they both laughed when
it got funny. Jamie was thrilled to be there with Tegan, it meant a lot that
Tegan had asked her to be there. It made her feel like she actually was part
of Tegan's family, something she hadn't had with any of her other lovers. 'That's
because she's special' she told herself as she found her gaze wandering towards
Tegan again. That was something she seemed to have no control over. She could
be watching the tv with Tegan wrapped in her arms and her eyes would just need
to see Tegan, just to make sure she was still there. Her need for the younger
woman made her feel vulnerable in a way she had never known before and that
frightened her.

Before
she had a chance to dwell on that anymore she was being tapped on the shoulder
and Plain Lazy were making their way back stage to get ready for their performance.
Once everyone was tuned up and ready to go they waited patiently until they
were called which wasn't very long.

*
* * * *

The
performance went well. Everyone liked the music that they performed and that
was what was important. When they made their way back to the seats everyone
was getting ready to collect their Record Of Achievements. One by one they were
called up to the stage were they photographed with Mr. Hughes.

Everything
was going well.

Tegan
was practically glowing when she stood to receive hers. The folder she held
in her hand, held all of her school life. Everything from her first report to
her leavers certificate. This would show her future college administrator or
employer that she was an extremely wonderful person to get along with, a hard
worker and it would also give them her grades from the last five years.

When
they was over the students had a choice, they could go home with their parents
and family or they could stay for the major party that the teachers were throwing
for them. after some consideration Tegan said good-bye to Jamie and went to
spend some time with her friends. This would most probably be the only time
she would see a lot of then for a while, at least until their exams were over.

Jamie
told Tegan to give her a ring if she wanted a lift home but she knew that Tegan
would come home with Sophie and Shane, as long as Tegan was careful Jamie didn't
mind but she didn't want her putting herself or the baby in trouble. That was
one thing Tegan loved about Jamie, she was always looking out for her and her
baby. Tegan knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that when this baby was born,
it wouldn't have one mother, it would have two. As the small red head thought
about it, she figured that even if her and Jamie didn't last, which she prayed
every night wouldn't happen, but if it did she didn't think she would have the
heart to stop Jamie visiting the child, unless the taller woman didn't want
too. Again, that was something she couldn't see happening.

Tegan
enjoyed the party at the school but was all to grateful to be going home. Her
feet hurt, her back her and she was tired. 'So this is a bummer about being
pregnant' She thought to herself as Anne drove her and Sophie home.

She
chuckled to herself as they pulled up outside the house. She was in a funny
mood and she had absolutely no idea why. Unexpected mood swings were something
the midwife had told her to expect and she was amazed at how Jamie had put up
with them over the last couple of weeks.

Once
Tegan was sitting in Jamie's apartment waiting for her partner to return from
the office, she thought back to a day when she had had a bad day at school and
she took it out on Jamie when her partner had picked her up from school.

"Hey"
Jamie smiled as Tegan arrived at the car door.

"Hey
yourself" Tegan muttered not too friendly.

Jamie
looked at her worriedly, Tegan seemed down and Jamie always hated it when
Tegan was upset. "Are you ok?" She asked nervously, the mood changes
with Tegan had been so frequent lately that Jamie was getting more worried
about upsetting her.

"I'm
fine" Tegan snapped before looking out of the window. The answer told
Jamie what she needed to know so she sadly turned her eyes towards the road
and headed home.

When
they had returned home Tegan regretted snapping at her lover and she wanted
to apologize but was in too much of a bad mood to figure out how too. So
she just went up to her apartment and sat there quietly. She knew that Jamie
was upset that Tegan was in a bad mood but there wasn't anything Tegan could
do about it.

Sometimes
she really hated being pregnant, everything seemed to be well...... different.
Things that most of them time she enjoyed were getting to her. Teasing in
school, she could usually put up with but now it got to here far too quickly.
In a way she wished more than anything that she could have met Jamie when
she wasn't pregnant. It had crossed her mind a few times that maybe Jamie
was feeling sorry for her being pregnant and all alone, and maybe she didn't
feel the way she said she did. Tegan tried to dismiss those thoughts as
soon as the entered her head but it was difficult. So much of her heart
was hoping that it was real and her mind was telling her that she didn't
deserve this and that it was all a dream that would be over any minute now.

She
immediately shook it out of her head again and went back to thinking about
her mood changes. In the last couple of weeks. Jamie had stood by her no
matter what so far, but would she be around next time? Would Jamie stay
with her to be made miserable every few days until the end of her pregnancy?
She highly doubted it and that made her sad. Jamie meant so much to her
and the thought that she could do something to drive the tall woman away
grabbed her heart and squeezed until it felt like it was squeezing the life
out of it.

She
sat in her apartment waiting for Jamie to come up to see her but the longer
she waited the more she was worried that maybe Jamie wouldn't come up to
see her. She sat there for a while before Tegan made her way to the bed
and was crying her eyes out.

Jamie
had come in to find her like this shortly after and was immediately worried.

"T.
are you ok?" She asked as she sat on the bed next to her.

Tegan
turned and looked up at her with puffy red cheeks. She looked like she had
been crying for a while. "I'm sorry." She sniffled.

Jamie
frowned, wondering what she was sorry for. "For what?"

"For
being such a bitch?" Tegan looked sheepish. She knew that Jamie wasn't
upset and that made her smile.

Jamie
knew what she was talking about now and she smiled. "That's ok"
Jamie told her before leaning over and hugging the smaller woman. "Everyone
has the right to be in a bad mood sometimes Tegan"

"Even
me?" Tegan smiled, she was feeling better now. Jamie's approval meant
so much to her and always made her feel better.

"Especially
you" Jamie assured her. "Tegan you're pregnant, mood changes are
to be expected. I know it can't be easy carrying all that extra weight here"
She placed her hand on the bump that was Tegan's stomach.

"I
know but I still feel like a bitch" Tegan placed her hand over the
hand on her stomach and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Thanks for understanding."

"You're
welcome" Jamie leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on her partner's
lips beofre that kiss led to a gentle exploration.

It
was at that point that Tegan was woken by the sound of the door shutting. She
opened her eyes and was met by the bluest eyes she had ever seen.

"Hey
Sleepyhead" Jamie smiled.

"Hey"
Tegan returned the smile and sat up, not believing she had fallen asleep.

"How
did your party go?" Jamie asked, as she sat down on the sofa next to Tegan,
she knew that Tegan had been in a good mood when she came home, she had spoken
to her mother about it before coming upstairs to find Tegan.

"It
was ok," Tegan admitted, before looking at the settee instead of Jamie
"But I missed you." Tegan had been more than surprised when she realised
how much she missed being away from Jamie when she was. It was like she was
addicted to her. If she was away from her for more than an hour she seemed to
get withdrawal. Anne had explained that sometimes this happened to pregnant
woman as well and that it was just her insecurities surfacing.

Jamie
smiled at the response she got from Tegan "I missed you, too"
Leaning over to kiss her partner.

At that
moment for the two women on the sofa, everything fell into place.

Chapter
38

The next
couple of months went by pretty quick for Tegan and Jamie. Tegan started her
GCSE's and only had one left. The due date for her baby was drawing ever closer
and she was starting to get nervous. She wrote so in her diary.

Well
the day is getting closer and I have never been so scared in my life. What
if something goes wrong? What if I don't come out of it? I have heard all
the horror stories about what can happen in a pregnancy. What if I go in
there with a lover, who means the world to me, expecting a baby that is
going to be ours and I don't come out, leaving Jamie with nothing?

The
thought of leaving Jamie terrifies me more than the thought of having a
baby. Sometimes I just want to curl up in her arms and ask her to make it
all right. She doesn't know of the nightmares that plague me when I am in
bed alone. I think maybe it is all starting to get to me now. The fact that
I am an expectant mother, doing the biggest exams of her life doesn't help.
I am stressed out about them, thank god there's only one left. I only hope
this baby can hold out until then.

Luckily
all of Tegan's important exams were over and she only had her General Studies
exam left. It wouldn't hurt her grades is she missed that, although she hoped
very much that she didn't. She wasn't sure if she wanted to sit the exam because
it would be another grade to her name or simply because she didn't feel ready
to have the baby. She did know though, that the baby wouldn't wait until she
was ready, when it wanted out, out it would come.

She had
been feeling slight twinges in her stomach all that day and the baby was getting
more and more restless and Tegan knew that now, it was only a matter of days.
Tegan was a bit worried because Jamie had been called out of town on business
and although she promised to get back as soon as possible she wasn't due home
until Saturday, which was two days away.

Tegan
lay on her bed listening to the sounds around her. Outside she could hear a
few cars by, in the distance she could hear the faint sound of a siren, taking
a deep breath she inhaled the smell of the food Jenny was cooking in the kitchen.
"Curry again" Tegan mused to herself. "She could open her own
take away with the amount she cooks."

Just
then a pain ripped through her causing her to cry out. Jenny was in the bedroom
like a shot. "Tegan are you ok?" She hurried over to the bed, kneeling
down to try and comfort her sister.

"No
no no, it's too early, this can't be happening n... oh boy" Tegan was mumbling
when she felt a warm wetness between her legs.

"What
is it?" Jenny was close to panic now. "Tegan, talk to me" After
everything Tegan had been through the last couple of weeks Jenny was afraid
that maybe Tegan was going to have a threatened miscarriage again or even worse
this time.

"My
water just broke" Tegan told her, calming down now she knew for definite
what was happening. "Go and get the telephone please" Jenny nodded
her head before getting off the bed and walking out of the room. Tegan also
got off the bed and started to pace, Anne had told her that walking around could
help to ease the pain a little and she was glad to find that it did. "Oh
god" she muttered as another pain ripped through her.

Just
then Jenny came back with the telephone. "Who're you gonna call?"

Tegan
chuckled at that "Ghostbusters."

Jenny,
who was worrying about her sister, frowned, not knowing what she was going on
about. "Huh?"

Tegan
shook her head, amused. "You know the film Ghostbusters. They always say
'Who're a gonna call? Ghostbusters.' What is with you, Jen" She could believe
her sister didn't get that.

Recognition
and then amusement crossed Jenny's face when she realised what Tegan was on
about. "Well it's nice to know you haven't lost your sense of humor"
She smiled.

"Well
that is something I have to keep or I would go mad" Tegan admitted to her
sister as she started dialling a number on the phone.

"Hello?"
The familiar voice answered the phone.

"Hey
Robin, is your Mom there?" Tegan prayed she was, she needed to get to the
hospital and neither her or Jenny could drive.

"Sure
Tegan, I'll get her for you now" The young boy told her before putting
the phone on the table and going to get Anne. It wasn't long before Tegan heard
a different set of footsteps coming towards the phone.

"Hello,
Tegan" Anne said. The warm, alto voice of Jamie's mother reminded Tegan
so much of her partner that she had to smile. Just then another pain tore through
her body, causing a groan of pain to escape her. A groan of pain which Anne
heard. "Tegan are you ok?"

"I'm
ok but I was wondering if you could take me to the hospital?" Tegan didn't
want to frighten the older woman, so she hoped that Anne realised what she was
saying.

"The
hospital?" Anne asked, before realisation dawned. "It's time?"

"Yeah
it's time" Tegan answered. "My water broke a few minutes ago and my
contractions are about very five minutes"

"I'll
be there in a few minutes" Anne assured her. "Do you want me to call
Jamie?"

Tegan
thought about that for a minute before answering. "Yes please I have to
get hold of the midwife"

"Ok"
Anne said. "I'll tell her to get back as soon as possible."

The thought
of seeing Jamie again made Tegan's heart skip a beat. "Tell her to drive
carefully"

"I
will. Bye Tegan" Anne waited for the answer and then hung up.

Shortly
after Tegan had phoned Anne, the midwife had been told and Anne was pulling
up outside the club.

*
* * * *

The sun
was beating down gently on the roof of the conservatory of the hotel where Jamie
was sitting enjoying the time on her own, just reading the latest Melissa Good
story Tropical Storm. Everything was peaceful until she experienced a pain in
her stomach. At first she thought it was nothing until after a few minutes she
felt it again. It was an unusual pain that she vaguely remembered feeling before.
Well it wasn't the pain she had felt but the feeling. She thought back to when
she had felt it before and she realised it was when Tegan had been confronted
by Catherine in the toilets. Realising that the feeling could mean that Tegan
was in trouble she darted up the stairs to her room.

Just
as she was about to reach for the phone, it rang. She immediately picked it
up. "Hello?" she spoke into the phone in a slightly panicked voice.

"Jamie"
The voice came across the line.

Jamie
started to worry more when she recognised the voice "Dad. What's wrong?"

If she
had been able to see the caller she would have noticed that her father was frowning.
'How does she know?' he thought to himself before speaking "Tegan
has gone into Labor. You're Mother has taken her to the hospital. She wanted
us to let you know."

When
Jamie realised it wasn't as bad as she thought she felt her heart slow down
and the insistent pounding that was starting to give her a headache was easing.
"Really? I'll be home as soon as I can"

John
smiled 'Exactly like me.' He thought. "Tegan told me to tell you
to drive carefully" John told her. "She wants you here in one piece"

"Dad
do me a favour?" Jamie asked, not waiting for his answer before carrying
on. "Upstairs in the chest of drawers in my living room, there is a blank
disc with Tegan written on the cover. There should be a walk man next to it.
Grab that and take it to the hospital and tell Tegan to listen to it and just
tell her I love her and I'll be there" She felt a little embarrassed to
be telling her father all of this but she knew it was important. Tegan had been
worried over the last couple of days about the commitment between the two of
them, she thought Jamie wouldn't be able to put up with a young child and a
young woman, the tape, Jamie hoped, would reassure her.

"Will
do" John said, "See you soon"

"Bye"
Jamie said, hanging up the phone she immediately reached for her bag and started
to pack her clothes. Well pack wasn't the word for it, she just grabbed
the clothes and shoved them into the bag. She would worry about their condition
later.

*
* * * *

Tegan
was settled into the bed looking around the sterile white room, waiting for
the next pain to arrive when John arrived with Robin and Sophie. He smiled at
the young woman before walking over to the bed. He kissed her on the forehead
before handing her the tape and walk man. "Jamie told me to give you this
and to tell you she loves you and she'll be here soon."

Tegan
frowned when she looked at the walk man and tape and she looked up to John before
smiling and looking back at the tape. "Did you tell her to drive carefully?"
she asked.

"Yeah
I did and she told me to tell you she would. She doesn't want to miss this."
John told her.

Tegan
nodded her head before putting the tape into the walk man and placed the earphones
over her ears.

Tegan,

I
know your most probably wondering what this is all about, well I just wanted
to let you know that even though you don't think I'll be around for very
much longer, I will always be here for you. I love you Tegan.

This
is a song that the band recorded especially for you. I was listening to
it the other day and I thought it was really appropriate for the way you
were feeling at the moment.

So
this is from my heart to yours.

All
my love.

Jamie.

I
do swear that I'll always be there.
I'd give anything and everything and I will always care.
Through weakness and strength,
happiness and sorrow,
for better, for worse,
I will love you with every beat of my heart.

From
this moment life has begun
From this moment you are the one
Right beside you is where I belong
From this moment on

From
this moment I have been blessed
I live only for your happiness
And for you live I'd give my last breath
From this moment on

I
give my hand to you with all my heart
Can't wait to live with you,
can't wait to start
You and I will never be apart
My dreams came true because of you

From
this moment as long as I live
I will love you, I promise you this
There is nothing I wouldn't give
From this moment on

You're
the reason I believe in love
And you're the answer to my prayers from up above
All we need is just the two of us
My dreams came true because of you.

From
this moment as long as I live
I will love you, I promise you this
There is nothing I wouldn't give
From this moment on
I will love you as long as I live
From this moment on.

I
love you Tegan.

Tegan
sat there with tears in her eyes. "I love you too" She whispered.

Chapter
39

A few
hours later, Jamie parked in the hospital car park, knowing by the pain she
was still receiving that she wasn't too late.

She ran
through the clean white walls of the hospital up the stairs straight into the
maternity ward. After what seemed like an eternity she made it. Anne and John
spotted here immediately and waited until she reached them before starting a
conversation. Robin, however, had no such control and he was running towards
his older sister immediately. He reached her and practically threw himself into
her arms.

"I
missed you" He hugged her neck, it had been nearly a week since he had
seen her last and for him that was too long.

"I
missed you too squirt" Jamie assured him, hugging him as she walked towards
her parents. "How is she?" she was worried that something was going
to go wrong. Jamie knew the possible consequences of child birth and she knew
that she wasn't going to live anymore if anything happened to Tegan.

"She's
ok. Jenny is in with her now. Go and ask at the reception if you can go in"
Anne told her, knowing that her eldest daughter should have no problem getting
in because had her written down as labor pal.

"Ok."
So Jamie, still carrying Robin walked over to the reception. "I'd like
to see Tegan Rhys" she said, praying she didn't want to know her relationship
with Tegan.

No such
luck. "Who are you?" The receptionist asked, thinking that she was
a friend or something and they weren't supposed to be present during the final
stages of labor.

Before
Jamie could answer Robin spoke up, surprising everyone. "She's the father"
He told her with pride. His face was beaming "And I'm the Uncle"

"Excuse
me?" The receptionist was obviously confused. She looked at Jamie who was
trying very hard not to laugh. She really hadn't expected Robin to come out
with that.

"She's
the..." Jamie quickly put her hand over Robin's mouth to stop him from
saying it again.

"I'm
her labor friend" Jamie told her, "My name is on the sheet."

The woman
looked at her before looking at the form Tegan had filled in telling them what
she wanted. "What's your name?" She asked.

"And that's Major Rhys daughter" It was more a statement than a question
but Jamie nodded anyway. It was pointless trying to hide it from anyone. Everyone
knew that Tegan was seeing Jamie now, the papers had made sure of that. "I'll
go and let her know your here"

With
that the receptionist left and walked over to the room where Tegan was. A few
minutes later she returned. "You may go in now"

Jamie
nodded her thanks and then walked back to her parents. She put Robin down next
to Anne and then she walked over to the room, the receptionist had walked over
to. She looked through the door to see Tegan lying on the bed in a hospital
gown. Jamie smiled as she walked in. 'It's finally happening' she thought
to herself.

Tegan
turned her head when the door opened and her face broke into a smile that lit
the whole room, when she spotted Jamie. "Hey you made it in one piece"

Jamie
returned the smile and walked over to the other side of the bed. "Of course
I made it in one piece." She told her. "Was there ever any doubt that
I would miss this?"

Tegan
smiled again. "No." She admitted, reaching out to take Jamie's hand
in hers. "The contractions hurt" she admitted, she had been praying
for the last few hours that it would be over with, but it didn't make it end
any quicker. She had turned down the drugs they had offered her because she
wanted to be a full awareness all through it.

"I
know it does" Jamie told her, she wasn't lying because she could feel the
pain that Tegan was in and she couldn't get over it.

I love
you Jamie" Tegan told her quietly.

"I
love you too" Jamie leaned over and placed a kiss on the sweating forehead
of her partner and let her head rest on the smaller woman's shoulder.

*
* * * *

The next
hour went by pretty quickly and it wasn't long before Tegan was fully dilated
and she was finally allowed to push, by the time the tenth hour was approaching
Tegan started to push. She just wanted to get it all over with now. She was
in no way ready for the pain that came with that first push. It felt like someone
was tearing her apart and she immediately grabbed hold of Jamie's hand.

When
Tegan grabbed Jamie's hand, Jamie was sure she was going to break her fingers
but she just sat trying to calm her partner down as she waited for the instruction
to push again.

Six pushes
later and Tegan was ready to give up. "I can't do this anymore," she
cried into Jamie's shoulder as the taller woman tried to comfort her. "Make
it stop please."

Jamie's
heart broke at the sight of Tegan in so much pain but she knew there was nothing
she could do except comfort her. "Tegan come on baby, you have to do this.
When it's over and you are holding that child in your arms it will all be worth
it. I swear to you."

Tegan
looked up into the glistening blue eyes and felt the renewed energy she needed
to get through it. "Our child." she said, her tone telling Jamie not
to argue.

Jamie
had no intention of doing that. She remembered what her father had said to her
when her mother was in labor with Robin 'Never argue with a woman in Labor'
and she swore she never would. The knowledge that Tegan wanted her to be a part
of this babies life was worth more than anything to her and she was determined
not to let Tegan or the baby down.

Finally
the final push was called for and Tegan was more than happy to oblige. When
she felt the baby finally leave her body and she heard the wail of her child
she fell on the bed, exhausted. The midwife cleaned and wrapped the baby up
before walking over to Tegan. "Would you like to meet your daughter, Tegan"
The midwife said, handing the baby to her mother.

As Tegan
and Jamie looked in awe at their daughter the midwife asked Tegan to give one
more push to pass the afterbirth. Shortly after they were left alone for a few
minutes. Tegan looked at the dark head of hair on her daughter's head and smiled.
'I wonder were she got that from?' she thought.

"So
what are you going to name her?" Jamie asked as she wrapped her arm around
her partner and she gave her hand to the baby, who immediately took hold of
one of the fingers and stuck it in her mouth.

Tegan
thought about Jamie's question and immediately came to an answer. "Cassie"
She said, quietly. As both of them looked down at the sleeping face of their
daughter.

Chapter
40

It wasn't
long before Tegan was surprised by Cassie's searching mouth. At first she didn't
realise what her daughter wanted but Jamie just smiled at her and told her to
sit up. Sitting up and sitting forward as instructed Tegan was surprised when
Jamie climbed in behind her. Pulling Tegan back towards her, Jamie surprised
the new mother by undoing the gown and pulling it down to reveal her breast.
Tegan frowned being naive enough to forget that they had discussed the best
form of feeding the baby and they had decided breast feeding was the way to
go. When Cassie latched onto her breast she sucked in a breath and how strong
the pull was. She hadn't expected that.

She watched
as Cassie suckled happily and for the first time in a while she was happy to
be part of a family. Her lover sat behind her, loving her and protecting her
and in front of her lay her daughter. Everything was perfect.

When
Cassie was finished the nurse returned and took the sleeping baby and placed
her in the nursery. Jamie lifted the gown back over Tegan's shoulder and laced
it up before John, Anne, Jenny, Sophie and Robin were allowed to come in.

Congratulations
were passed around the room and everyone chatted for a while before Tegan started
to feel sleepy, so everyone said goodnight and left Jamie and Tegan alone.

"Well
I suppose I'd better get going too" Jamie reluctantly admitted.

Tegan
knew that no-one was allowed to stay with her but she really didn't want Jamie
to leave. "I know" She sighed, sadly. "Thank you for getting
here so quick."

Jamie
just smiled at her. "Like I would have missed this" she raised an
eyebrow in question, daring Tegan to disagree with her.

"Never"
Tegan smiled sleepily. "I'll see you in the morning?"

"Of
course" Jamie told her. "I'll be here as soon as the sun is up."

"Ok"
Tegan said, as Jamie leaned over and kissed her gently. "Thank you for
the tape."

Jamie
had forgotten to ask if she had liked the tape or not, but she was glad that
she did. "You are welcome." She told her. "Now get some sleep"

"I
will." Tegan agreed. "I love you"

"Love
you too" Jamie said as she turned to leave, before she reached the door
she was surprised by the gentle snoring of the exhausted woman in the bed.

*
* * * *

Two days
later Tegan was released from hospital and Jamie was there to meet her. Anne,
Jamie and Sophie had been out shopping the day before, getting stuff that was
needed for the baby. Nappies, a couple more clothes and most importantly a pram.
So know Jamie pushed the pram, with the sleeping Cassie in and Tegan held onto
Jamie's arm, both looking like the loving parents they were.

Jamie
had also planned a surprise party for Tegan when she got home. A welcome home
party. All of her friends were going to be there. She had even managed to get
a couple of Tegan's friends from River's End there. Her Uncle Kevin and Aunt
Emma were there, they had taken a real liking to Tegan and Tegan to them. She
had brought Mary and a few others that Jenny had told her about, plus Darren
and a few friends from Seaview. Even Tegan's grandmother had agreed to come
'Like I'd miss that' she had told Jamie when she asked.

The journey
home was pretty quiet. Both women contemplating the future that lay ahead for
all three of them. Tegan was the one who was worried about most things. Would
they make good parents for Cassie? Would they still be together in a few months
time or would being forced to look after someone else's child become to much
for Jamie?

Jamie
was worried about how she would fare as a parent. She had no worries about Tegan,
maternal instincts were better than anything else. Would Tegan still want her
when the going got tough?

Everything
would be revealed, they both knew this but it was going to kill them waiting.

As they
pulled up outside the club, everything was quiet. There wasn't a car in site.
Jamie prayed that everyone had turned up. She got out of the car and helped
Tegan with the pram before heading towards the door. She took the pram and pushed
Tegan into the dark club waiting for the noise she just knew was coming next.
It did. "SURPRISE" came from all around the room at the same time
that the lights came on, shining on a load of friends and family. Tegan smiled
and turned to Jamie with a look of utter contentment on her face.

Jamie
smiled back at the love of her life before heading over to her partner. She
put her arms around Tegan and they both felt like they had, for the first time
in their lives, come home.

The
End

N.B
Well what can I say it is finally finished. Thank you all for being
patient and sticking with this story. I now I haven't been as regular with the
updates as I would have liked but there we go. You have all been here with me
from the beginning and I really appreciate that. You've given me the incentive
to carry on when I got a kick in the teeth in the middle of this, luckily after
the first couple of flames I never heard anymore.

Anyway
I hope you enjoyed the story and I hope it was worth the wait. Let me know what
you think.